Fish & SeafoodDifficulty: medium

Pescado a la Sal (Whole Fish Baked in Salt)

Name: Pescado a la Sal (Whole Fish Baked in Salt)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: 1 whole sea bass), scaled and gutted; 2 kg coarse sea salt; 4 egg whites; 2 lemon slices inside the fish; Fennel fronds or parsley inside the fish; Olive oil and lemon to finish

Spain's spectacular way to cook fish: a whole sea bass sealed in a salt crust that steams it in its own juices. Foolproof, dramatic and unbelievably moist.

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Instructions

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1Preheat oven to 220 °C. Whisk the egg whites into the salt until it holds together like wet sand.

2Pack a 2 cm salt bed on a tray; lay the stuffed fish on top.

3Cover completely with the remaining salt, pressing to seal - no cracks.

4Bake 25 minutes for a 1.2 kg fish (5 more minutes per extra 250 g).

5Rest 5 minutes; crack the crust at the table (part of the show).

6Brush off the salt, peel the skin, and fillet - the flesh steams off the bone. Dress only with olive oil and lemon.